The Next Generation Chapters
by greenisthecolorofmyenvy
Summary: Years later, another virus breaks out, killing all of the adults. It's a new age. A new generation of Mallrats run the mall, how will they survive? I own all the characters  except Brady & Bray Jr  as well as the plots. **PLEASE REVIEW IF READ**
1. Chapter 1

Amongst the rubble and destruction, Amara watched the city in complete chaos. It had only been weeks since another virus plagued the world. This time it took the adults that molded what was now left of the city- the ones who knew the secrets to surviving a true apocalypse. She had heard the stories of the Locos, Demon Dogs, and Jackals; she knew every story of every hardship that the Mallrats had faced to stay alive. She had grown up feeling hopeful for the future. Now that all that hope was torn from her, what was she to live for?

She knew the answer to that- Her mother, Amber. She had to live for Amber. She was the last to die of the virus. Amara made sure to spend every moment with her on her deathbed. Amber had been the leader of the Mallrats. From day one, she kept order within the tribe.

"I know I'm dying, Amara." Amber had told her daughter. The rasp in her voice was almost unbearable to listen to. Her brow was sweating uncontrollably. She squint her eyes to focus on her daughter's face. Amber coughed and continued on. "I don't want sorrow. My life is over, as are my struggles. Yours have only just begun. My dream was to survive. I want you to keep that dream alive."

Amara wanted nothing more than to survive, but how could she with all of the brewing chaos? How could she rest at night knowing there were tribes with access to weapons? Tribes had moved on from technological and religious take over. It was now all about force by gunpoint. Guns were like gold, and everyone had one while others wanted more.

She ran her fingers over the metal breastplate on her chest. Within weeks she had to wear metal all over her body for protection. Though she had access to guns, she never kept one on her. To take another life made Amara feel like she was one of them- a blood thirsty psycho.

A sudden round of guns firing caught her off guard. They sounded close. All of this chaos was diverting her mind from the real reason she was here. Looting. The adults kept food storage "hot spots" around the city. Since they began thinning out, kids would take what they want when they wanted it. Nobody took the time to trade, and if they did, they'd only trade weapons. She was sure that most of the kids living in the city now hadn't seen a decent meal in a very long while.

Amara began walking, the satchel she was wearing bumping against her lower back. She'd already picked up a couple of loose cans from around the streets. It was nothing much, but just a few unmarked cans could keep her tribe satisfied for a few extra days. As she knelt down to pick up a rather dented can of peaches, a foot stepped on her hand. She yelped in pain as she looked up.

A face glared down at her. He was dressed like a police officer, though his trousers and shirt were ripped and stained with spray paint. He had gauges in both ears, large enough to fit two fingers. The two shining studs from his lower lip winked at her. "Well, what's this. We have a rat out during the day. I thought your kind only looted at night?" He removed his foot from her hand, and as he did so, she turned to run away. He grabbed her arm, causing her to jerk backwards. "You're in Bulldog territory, Babe. You know the penalty for looting in Bulldog territory, dontcha?"

Amara's scream was caught in her throat. She tried to pull away, but his grasp was so tight. His hand reached for his back pocket. Amara knew it was a gun. Bulldogs were known for having guns on them at all times. She kept struggling in his grasp until finally she felt the cool, metal of the pistol on her cheek. Instantly, she was still. Her eyes widened. Was this how it was going to end for her? She was going to be shot by this kid who assumed he had the authority over whether or not she lived or died?

In a boom of sound, the grasp on her arm loosened and the kid was on the ground. Blood sputtered from his head as he lay lifeless on the concrete of the street. Amara turned to the source of the loud noise, a small smile slowly shaped across her lips. "Thanks."

Her half brother, Bray, smiled back, putting his handgun back into its holster. "Looting at three in the afternoon? That Bulldog was right. Rats never loot during the day."

"Yeah, well, we've been running low." Amara ran her fingers through her dark hair as she glanced at the kid, his blood now spidering toward the sewer grate. "Food is running out. The lack of traders trading food has really affected us greatly. Plus, I think we have a thief on our hands."

"Really, now?" Bray said, amused. "Must be one of the kids." 

"Maybe." Amara couldn't stop looking at the kid, dead on the ground. Life would no longer flourish in his lungs. His heart would no longer beat. He was just another dead body in the nameless count of millions. A chill flowed up her spine as she turned her attention to Bray. "Let's go back, please? I don't need anymore rescues at gunpoint."

Bray laughed, wrapping his arm around Amara's shoulders. "I think there should be more rescues at gunpoint! Did you see how precise that shot was? Damn. I'm getting good." He boasted as they began the trip home. Amara couldn't help but roll her eyes. Her half brother and herself could not be anymore different.

Walking back into the Mall was like a breath of fresh air after you'd been trying to breathe underwater. The tensions outside the Mall seemed to float off Amara's shoulders the instant she set foot inside this safe haven.

"Saving my half-sisters life sure gives me an appetite." Bray said, ruffling Amara's hair. They both walked up the steps of the mall, to the kitchen. He made his way over to the pantry that Amara had instantly begun filling with some of the food she had looted in the city. "Looks like we're missing a few cans of baked beans…" Bray noted as he grabbed one of the cans of peaches Amara had just restocked.

"We have a set amount of how much the members of this tribe can eat!" Amara shut the pantry, angrily. They'd had meeting after meeting about the food issues and still these kids didn't get it. "What would Mom do?" Amara turned to Bray who was already gorging himself.

"I know." Bray said, swallowing a mouth full of peaches. "Lock the pantry."

Amara shook her head. "Locking the pantry would lead to a full out battle. I already can name a couple of people who wouldn't be okay with that." She walked over to the table that Bray was sitting at and sat across from him. She folded her hands together and rested her chin on her knuckles. "Things are just rough. Finding food is getting harder and harder with each passing minute. What we have stored isn't enough." The Mallrats had their own food storage and within a couple of weeks they'd been dangerously close to having nothing.

Bray wiped his mouth with his sleeve. "I dunno. You've just gotta fight to survive."

"Fight?" Amara laughed. "I don't want to fight. I want to just… be. What's so wrong with that?"

"I guess you haven't been out there, but they're using guns now. Weapons. Things that the… what's their names? The Technos and Locos and Chastened-"

"The Chosen." Amara corrected him.

"Right. They never had the weapons that everyone has now. And even back in the Elders time, they had to fight. Face it. In society today, we will never just 'be'. Fighting is just what has to be done from now on."

"I think there's another way." She knew there had to be. What about Gandhi? What about Civil Disobedience? It worked in the past. Why can't we use those techniques for our future?

"Alright, Freedom Fighter." Bray replied, gulping down his last bit of peaches and drinking the syrup left behind.


	2. Chapter 2

Falcon hated the city.

The air was so stale and dead. On one brief trip there as a nestling, he remembered how the wind blew smells of rotten metal from various old buildings. Despite the democracy that had ensued, he still saw many stray children wandering around, digging through trash to find food. Everything had seemed so unfriendly, right down to the stray cats in the alley. When he rushed home before sundown, he could remember his mother swatting his behind with a bamboo stick. "What have I told you about the city?" She told him, angrily, drying the small tears from his eyes. "People die there. Men will snatch you up and take you to a place far away from Mommy. Crazy people are there, Falcon... terribly insane people."

When his mother had died, his younger sister, River, thought it best that he go back there. "Mom died of a strange disease. If it couldn't be diagnosed here, maybe a doctor in the city could tell you more about it. Maybe it could save the rest of us."

Falcon had crossed his arms around his chest. "Save us? Whatever this is, it's only hitting the elders of the tribe. Besides, I'm not going into that filthy place. It's only existence is to breed slime."

"That's where Mother was raised… You know just as well as I do that things have changed."

He threw his arms into the air. "Really, River? Can you honestly believe that things have changed there? I hear whispers from the trees. They cry of such destruction and sadness whenever the wind blows from the east. The city is probably where this virus came from. Mom wouldn't have wanted me to go-"

"Well, Mom's dead!" River yelled. Her green eyes were fierce, surrounded by her pale, porcelain skin. Freckles dusted her flushed cheeks. "She's dead, Falcon. And if you're wrong about this virus, we all will die too."

Falcon hated to see River angry. Though she was only a year younger and a foot or two shorter, she had the temper of a grizzly bear. "Fine." He said, bitterly. "I'll go."

River spun on the heals of her feet, collecting things off of various shelves in her hut and gently placing them into an empty woven satchel. "There is a tribe Mom used to talk about- The Mallrats. Find them and tell them of this sickness." She stopped for a moment, touching something around her neck. In one swift movement, she pulled on it. Slowly turning around, she stretched out her hand and dropped something into Falcon's palm.

It was her locket. He opened it and saw a picture of a woman smiling at him. "Who's-"

"I'm not sure of her name, but Mom used to tell me that they were great friends. They were both Mallrats back when they were nestlings. Give that to them. They'll identify the girl and hopefully identify our Mom." River picked up the satchel and handed it to Falcon.

It had been four days since he left The Eco's base. River had packed a week worth of dried fish and berries for him, along with a small blade for hunting. She insisted he packed more, but Falcon told her he didn't need many things. He'd lived off the earth almost all his life. If he ran out of something, he knew it wouldn't take him long to retrieve it himself.

Falcon could see the buildings of the city in the distance. With each step closer he could feel the air getting caught in his lungs. The locket in his pocket felt twenty pounds heavier than it should have. It was a firm reminder of why he was doing this- his tribe and his sister needed his help. A couple more steps could easily be the answers that they were all hoping for him to find.

He stopped and made an abrupt turn to his right. A boy a couple yards away had a rifle pointed toward him. Falcon raised both hands in retreat, having no idea what else to do.

"Who are you?" The kid asked. His head was shaved, leaving small patches here and there which were dyed different greens and browns. Shaved into his eyebrows were small lines. On his chest was a shiny metal plate with dents by the heart. He looked dirty, like he'd previously been rolling in a mud pit. The smell of him made Falcon's stomach churn.

"I'm from the Eco Tribe. My name is Falcon." He replied, bowing his head slightly. "Is there anything wrong?"

"You're on Bulldog territory." He said while cocking his gun. "We don't appreciate tree huggers."

Falcon lowered one hand slowly, trying to grope the inside of his satchel for his knife. "Maybe we can talk this out… I have some food you might be interested in? You look like you haven't ate a decent meal in days."

It was true; the boy looked skinny as a rail. There were deep pits in his cheeks which were sunken in. The whites of his eyes were now a dull yellow. "Oh? And what will you feed me? Some bloody roots and berries?" He seemed to get a kick out of his own joke. He started cackling like a mad man.

Having grabbed the knife, Falcon immediately dropped to the ground. The boy noticed this sudden movement and lowered his gun. Just as his finger hit the trigger, Falcon rolled quickly and jumped back to his feet. As soon as the boy cocked his gun again, Falcon began running toward him in a zigzagging motion. The boy couldn't keep up with him. With each shot, the stray bullets would hit a tree or the ground. Falcon jumped and landed on top of the boy, the knife in his hand on the boy's neck. "Drop your gun." Falcon told him.

With a scared look in his droopy eyes, the boy did as he was told. "You ain't gonna kill me." He spat in Falcon's face.

"Really?" Falcon asked, pressing the knife closer, almost digging into the boy's skin. He knew he could never really kill anyone- it was hard enough to kill animals for the hunt. The only thing that could allow him to sleep at night was to know that he'd set their spirit free to be reborn into something greater. "I could kill you with just one swoop of my knife, you son of a-"

A jutting pain shot through Falcon's body as he recoiled backwards, his knife falling out of his hand, the other hand blindly landed on his stomach. There was blood, everywhere. He looked over at the boy who had a long knife in his hand, a smile on his ugly face. "Look who's stuck now." He smirked, grabbing his gun from the ground and running off.

Falcon laid there, the pain so great in his stomach that he couldn't move. All he could feel was sadness overcome him. He hadn't even made it to the city and he was going bleed to death on the outskirts. What would River say? He wondered if Mom was watching from the Beyond. He wondered if she was disappointed. He wondered-

Everything went black. A sudden fatigue fell over him as he felt two arms picked him up…

* * *

Falcon opened one eye to blinding light, and then shut it again. Groaning, he rubbed both of them with balled fists. When he finally opened his eyes, he saw he was in a white room. The blinding lights were coming from the open windows. He turned on his side to look outside and noticed buildings against blue sky. Was he dead? Maybe this was hell?

"Hey, guys… he's awake." A female's voice seemed to say out of nowhere.

Falcon sat up quickly. A jutting pain went through his entire body, causing him to suck in his breath. His head turned toward where the voice was coming from. It was a female. She was a beautiful brown hair, brown eyed angel. "H-hi." He responded, stunned.

"My friends found you while on our rounds for food. One of them carried you back here, to our mall." She spoke softly, yet she was sure of her words. She sounded to him like a leader. "I'm Amara. This is Niko and Tristan." She motioned to the two people sitting next to her.

Falcon only glanced at the two of them but stared at Amara. He couldn't help it. She was just so lovely.

"And you are?" Niko cut in.

"Falcon." He told them, drawing his attention away from Amara. "I'm from the Eco Tribe. I'm looking for some people… the Mallrats."

"Looks like you've come to the right place." Tristan said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You're looking at us… well, some of us."

Falcon's eyes lit up. "You're the Mallrats? Is this the mall?" He sat up, this time ignoring the sharp pain in his stomach. "I've got something for you." He patted his pants pockets, trying to find the locket that his sister had given him. He couldn't feel anything but fabric. "This locket… My sister gave it to me to give to you. It was my Mother's. She died from a mysterious virus. It's been hitting all our elders. I've come to ask for your help. I've been told that you could cure it. You have the antidote."

The three Mallrats looked at each other, then back at Falcon as if he had three heads. Niko opened her mouth but Amara cut in before her. "Your mother was right. We do have an antidote-"

"Then you can give it to me. I could save our Tribe-"

"It doesn't work." Tristan told him, his hand still rested on Falcon's shoulder. "Our elders have died too. We tried giving the exact same antidote we had before, but the virus must have mutated into something even worse than anyone has ever seen. There was nothing we could do."

Falcon lay back on his pillowed bed. He was quiet. How could this be? He heard his Mother talk about a virus that destroyed her parents, but how could it come back in a second wave? What if it grows into something that could potentially destroy them?

"I'm sorry, Falcon." Amara told him, solemnly.

"I have to leave." He lifted himself up and stiffly moved his legs to the side of the bed. "I have to get back to River, she needs me-"

"Woah, you're not going anywhere!" Niko exclaimed as herself, Tristan and Amara tried to stop him. "You've got internal stab wounds. If it wasn't for Tristan, you'd be dead right now… bleeding from the inside out in the woods."

Falcon suddenly felt weak again, another wave of fatigue swept over him. "But, I-"

"You need rest." Tristan told him, covering him back up. "Sleep. When you wake up, we'll have a meal for you and we can discuss more."

"Right.." Eyes starting to close, Falcon was on the edge of awake.

"Did you see the way he was eyeing you up?" Niko said to Amara, nudging her slightly with her elbow. "He's kind of cute… Maybe you could get to know him better." Niko placed her had into Tristan's, indicating that maybe Amara should try an intimate relationship.

Amara glared at the girl and shook her head. "Tell me if he wakes." She said to the both of them before she walked out of the hospital wing.


	3. Chapter 3

With two burlap bags in her hands, Lux walked down the ally closest to Sector 7- or what was left of it. Sector 7 had been established as the trading market. Amber had set it up herself, allowing for each tribe in the city to set their own hut for traded goods. Now, as Lux jumped the wrought iron bars of a security fence, she didn't see the cheerful faces of hopeful kids, trading baskets or homemade jellies for fresh fish. She saw Bulldog tents lining both sides of the ally.

Lux pulled the hood of her coat over her eyes. Making eye contact with these people could be deadly. Anger coursed through their veins, an anger that Lux could never understand.

She arrived at tent number ten- Fang's tent. He was the most feared Bulldog of them all. Tough as nails, he killed just for the fun of it. The metallic smell of blood turned him on. She had been to him before, the fear of him becoming less and less with each visit. He liked her- said she had a spunk about her, though everything she'd ever told him had been a lie. To him, she was Pandora from a nomad tribe out west. Each visit with him, they swapped bloody tales. It gave her a thrill to make an alter-ego for herself.

"Pandora… it's been a while." Fang sat in a makeshift throne, sporting a gnarled looking top hat and scuffed up leather shoes. He had a beauty about him that nobody else saw, except for Lux. Fang was less of a bulldog and more of a puppy. "How have you been? What's in those bags?"

"Last time we spoke, you needed a meal." She emptied the bags onto the floor, revealing cans upon cans of food and chocolate. "Here's your meal."

He stood up and walked over to her. He knelt on one knee and examined the cans. "Beans… Peaches… Corn… Chocolate?" Fang picked up a bar of chocolate and brought it to his nose. He inhaled deeply, and then exhaled, his eyes rolling in ecstasy. "Oh, how I've missed chocolate."

Lux couldn't help but smirk. "Well, it's there. All of it is yours- but I need a favor."

He slowly stood up, towering over Lux. Any stray in the city would have instantly cowered down to him, but Lux knew better. "Favors? You've never asked me for favors before..."

"I need it this time, friend." She gazed into his dark eyes, the eyes, she felt, of a scared child. "You have something of great value to me."

Fang turned his back away from Lux. Although he had labeled her as a friend rather than foe, her gaze was just too much for him to take at the moment. He crossed his arms over his chest. "What is it, Pandora."

"I need Zoots goggles." She said, so very sure of the words she was speaking.

Fang turned back towards her, his eyes narrowed. "How do you know I even own something of such value?"

"Fang, you are the wealthiest person in the city right now. I know who the Almighty was to your family, to your mother. She worshiped him after the first virus broke out. She was his queen. It's only assumed that you own something of his." Lux got down on one knee, now even smaller than he and yet her gaze still pierced his heart to the core. "I've only been told of his greatness in stories."

Her stone cold hand reached for his. It chilled him how badly she wanted this prize. A weakness of his was for women, this of which Lux knew. Fang slowly pulled her up to a standing position and kissed her white hand. "For you, Pandora… But only for you."

Turning toward one of his rather fat guards, he snapped his fingers. Immediately the guardsman waddled out of the tent. Still turned away from her, he shut both of his eyes. "I would never do this for anybody else. Giving away such a precious artifact for a few tin cans and chocolate.. that's not the reason. You, my darling, are the reason…"Again, he turned to face her. His hard jaw line softened and the lines that creased his forehead flattened out. He looked like an actual person again. As he opened his mouth, the pudgy man waddled back in with a leather hatbox. He bowed, handing it over to Fang.

As slowly and carefully as possible, Fang took the top of the hatbox off, lifting the dusty hat out of it. All the while, Lux kept reminding herself of plan B- the blades in the inside of her boots and wound with hemp around her forearms, the pistol tied to the inside of her thigh and tear gas strapped to her back. All in case of an emergency, though she knew what she was doing. For years, she watched people- how they acted, what made them tick. Since she began coming to the Bulldogs Hideaway, she studied how Fang worked, soon developing a sick obsession with bringing him down.

After he handed it to her, Lux placed it in one of the bags that she had filled food with. Her skin was beginning to prickle, the hairs on the back of her neck standing on end. "Thank you, Fang." She said, rubbing his temple to his cheekbone with the back of her hand, bypassing the harsh cold metal of his eyebrow rings.

He looked into her eyes for a couple of moments, feeling her soft hand on his cheek. Those eyes… pale blue, like the color of ice and metal. He couldn't help himself… he grabbed a hold of her blond hair and pulled her face into his, capturing her lips in a rough kiss. As he pulled the fistful of her hair away, he bit her lip, hard, drawing blood. Fang let go, waving her away from him.

Lux smirked at him, wiping her lip with the back of her hand. The thoughts running through her head when she left his tent were burning her eyes with tears. Happy tears. Thrilled, excited, entirely too pleased tears that finally she'd be able to do what she'd dreamed about for a very long while.


	4. Chapter 4

Fang watched the back of Pandora's messy blond hair pass through the exit of his tent, the smell of lavender still wafted in the air from her passing. His white knuckled hand clutched the arm of his throne. In life, he had learned to not trust a soul. Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer. His mother, Ebony, was a firm believer in that theory. Pandora had come to him plenty of times, though the first would always stick in his mind.

She walked into his tent with those stone blue eyes. He could feel the fury within her, not the kind that ran through his blood, but a different kind. He couldn't put his finger on it. Without even touching her beautiful face, he knew she was as soft as a flower. She told him stories of slaughtering hundreds of old Techno prisoners back before the adults passed. Pandora always smiled a wicked little smile when she mentioned the tears of the innocent, or while describing the asphyxiating smell of blood soaked clothing. When he began hoping that she and him would cross paths again, he knew that it was completely out of character. Never before had he craved someone's companionship so much.

But this trip was different. He had he seen such desperation in her eyes. He smelled betrayal the moment she walked through the door. "Call for Nathaniel." Fang barked to his guardsman. He nodded and scurried out of the tent.

Fang sighed. What was this feeling erupting from his heart and pulsating through his veins? Not only was he looking forward to her beauty gracing him, but he welcomed those dreams where she stood over poor innocent men and women, bleeding. Twisted, they were, but all the while beautiful to him. He knew there had to be more to this little wench than what she was putting on the table.

"You called?" Nathaniel, Fang's twin brother walked in. They shared very similar features, though Nathaniel had white hair while Fang had jet black. Nathaniel's leather jacket was aligned with spikes, inside and out. Pain. The man lived for pain.

"You know that little tart that walked through the tent a bit ago? Blond girl, striking eyes, pale complexion-"

"Why, yes. I noticed her hopping the security fence. She happens by your place a lot, dear brother…"

Fang's face fell. He hated when Nathaniel saw him with his guard down. "Business, of course." Fang fumbled on his thoughts for a moment, but then got back on track. "I want you to follow her. Tell me where she stays. Do not make yourself known."

Nathaniel smirked. "Damn. I should have liked a little torture in the afternoon…"

"No. Leave the torturing to me, brother."

With a small bow, Nathaniel turned away from Fang and returned to the city streets.


	5. Chapter 5

"The reason I called you all to this meeting is because we're having a growing problem." Amara paced the floor slightly, the others had scattered chairs around her. Most of her tribe was there, except for Lux. Amara hadn't seen the girl all day long. "I've been keeping a tight food inventory and I?ve noticed that every week at least six cans of food go missing. We're almost completely out of chocolate and dried fruit. Now, I'm not sure who has been doing it, so I?m asking if anyone knows something, please, fess up now.'

"You don't think that the one person who isn't here could be the person who's been doing it?" The voice was coming from Brady, sitting in the back of the crowd. Her arm was rested on one of the tables, her lace gloved hand sitting under her chin. Her black hair curtained her pale face, leaving the look of utter boredom in shadow. She was almost the spitting image of her mother, with the temper of a tiger. "We never see Lux. She leaves for days sometimes and comes back whenever she feels it's necessary or she can get a free meal out of it. Obvious red flag there…"

"You shouldn't point fingers." Niko blurted out from the other side of the cafe. "For all we know, it could be you."

"Why would I even bother?" Brady asked, feeling the rage building in her chest.

"Who knows what you do while you sit in your room all day, barely social, keeping the sunlight out." Niko spat back, her knuckles white with annoyance. Tristan slipped his hand over hers, trying to calm her down a bit. "How do we know what side you're on?"

"You know where my loyalties lie, Niko." Brady shouted. A red blush started to burn across her cheeks. "I've been in this mall longer than you have- longer than most of you!" For the longest time, Brady protested the fact that Amara was trying to take up role as leader, but Amara knew well that the girl could never handle such a position. Her temper could get them all killed, easily, as well as her emotions.

"That doesn't mean you have a right to point a finger at Lux." Tristan told her in a very calm voice. It was almost impossible to anger him.

"You can't even talk! Niko only brought you here because she felt sorry for you!" Brady shouted at him.

"Now, that's enough!" Bray yelled, but his voice was over powered by Niko's bought of screaming.

"Don't you dare! He has every right to be here. More of a right then you do, might I add. At least he DOES something around this mall! You just sit on your royal behind and cry over your dear ol' Mum." Niko knew she hit a soft spot and prepared herself for the storm that would be raging within seconds...

Brady's face contorted in rage. Amara could see the girl balling up her fist, ready to strike. She stood up, throwing the chair she was sitting on behind her so it made a loud clatter. "Stop it! We are a tribe! Why are we fighting like a bunch of Bulldogs?" Both girls looked down at their feet, ashamed at the fight they let break out. "This meeting is a matter of if we have enough food to fill our stomachs! We're going to have to cut down our food intake- three cans a day. Breakfast, lunch and dinner. No exceptions. And as for Lux..." Amara panned her glare at both of the girls.

"As for me, what."

Everyone turned to find Lux, standing in the lobby of the mall. She had mud caked in her hair and on her boots. Her eyes were wide with curiosity as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"We're missing food from the rations." Amara said as Lux began walking up the steps, into the cafe. She took a seat next to Bray. "A large amount of it has gone missing for the past couple of weeks. I was just telling everyone if they know where it has gone, they should tell me as soon as possible. I know Jack left this mall secure before he passed, so I can't imagine we have an outside thief on our hands."

"It can't be an outsider. I've been keeping up on security measures." Lux replied. Her heart tensed a bit, but she was well aware that she had to play it off. She couldn't let everyone know that she had traded almost all their rations for Zoot's goggles. "Maybe it's someone with some kind of problem?"

"A problem? HA." Brady blurted out. "The only problem that someone has is kleptomania. Or selfishness. Which one is it, Lux? Did you eat it all yourself, or is it just a thrill for you?"

"Enough, Brady!" Bray yelled, causing her to instantly get quiet. He knew she had the tongue of a snake. He grew up with her; she was closer to him than his half sister was. "We'll just have to do what Amara says if nobody is willing to fess up. Let's not argue. It gets us nowhere."

"Bray's right." Tristan said. "We'll follow the rules, nobody will get hurt. Negativity will lead us to a dead end and more fighting…" He noted, followed by a dramatic eyeroll from Brady.

"Meeting finished. You may all be dismissed." Amara announced to her own pleasure. Everybody stood up to go about their business, but as Lux stood up to go, Amara motioned her over. "Lux! Can I have a word?"

Lux walked over to her, tucking a strand of her blond, muddy hair behind her ear. "Yeah?"

"You're a bit… dirty. Where have you been?" Amara asked, touching Lux's sleeve where the mud began to harden.

"Looting- trying to find weapons for our storage, in case of Tribal warfare." Lux quickly pulled away- Amara's hands only a couple inches away from the wound on her arm. A stab wound. "It's crazy out there…"

"Yes, it is." Amara could sense that the girl wanted to change the subject. "I know we have surveillance cameras in the sewers and one outside the mall… I was wondering if we had any extra. I was thinking that maybe if I could catch the perpetrator in the act, I could sleep better at night."

"Yeah… I'm sure I have a couple more. I could set them up for you, as well as giving direct cable to one of Dad's old laptops. Constant feedback, Twenty-four hours a day, Seven days a week. Sound good?" Lux asked.

"Perfect. Can you accomplish this by tonight?"

"Sure. Let me just work out the kinks." Lux smiled at Amara, but on the inside she knew that without her offerings, she couldn't keep Fang on her side. The way to a man's heart is through is stomach, but maybe she could find her way around it. With this sudden flaw in her plan, maybe the direct route to the heart was the only way.


	6. Chapter 6

Nathaniel had followed that girl as his brother had said... the one with the long blond hair and pale complexion... the one that reeked of lavender and dirt. Pandora, so she called herself, but for some reason Nathaniel knew she was lying... a stage name. She had gotten her grubby paws onto a most precious family heirloom. For what?

The girl had brought Nathaniel all the way out to the beach, almost giving him no where to hide. Luckily, he'd changed his cloths, looking the part of a Beachcomber, a tribe that predominately fished off the coast and traded to others. Even so, this tricky little wench walked to the very edge of the coast.

The people she met up with were unlike anyone he had ever seen. The Bulldogs had alliances all up and down this city, even in a few cities over. Their faces were painted, giving them the impression of walking skeletons. Each looked the same, sporting the same jet black dread-lock hairstyle, ripped up black trousers and safety-pinned yellow Lycra shirts.

"You get what we asked for?" Asked one that seemed to resemble a leader. He was the only one with red tears underneath his eyes.

"Only if you swear to do what I said before."

"The wind has ears." He had looked around, as if he knew that Nathaniel was lurking around the bend. "We know what we have promised you."

"Good." Inside her bag, Pandora had grabbed the hatbox out of her burlap sack, opening it with as much care as Fang had. With Zoot's goggles sitting on both of the palms of her hands, she held it out for the man to grab.

He hesitated for a moment. No sound could be heard, except for the excessive wind blowing in Nathaniel's ears and the waves breaking against the sand. Then, with the most delicate hands a man could have, he took the item from Pandora. He turned it around in his hands a couple of times, as if he was actually questioning the authenticity of the artifact. "How do I know it's real?"

"Would I lie?" Pandora asked. Her tone was even, not a hint of emotion in it. Her eyes were piercing daggers. "I risked my neck for this. It's real."

The kid bowed his head in her direction, and she bowed back, then they were on their way.

But Nathaniel wasn't through yet. He now knew why this girl wanted Zoot's goggles (though not fully understanding), but it was still a mystery as to where she came from. With quick and quiet feet, Nathaniel followed her all the way to the city, right to the Mall. "Little trollop..." It was almost too easy for Nathaniel to follow her and find out her lies. A Mallrat. Fang and Nathaniel's mother had been a Mallrat, but soon parted with the tribe after they were born.

"Oh dear brother," Nathaniel's smile cracked his face as he rubbed underneath his chin in pure satisfaction. "The stories I have for you."


	7. Chapter 7

Amara changed into her night gown shortly after the last bit of work with Lux on the new surveillance cameras. It was almost one o'clock in the morning, and she could feel her eyes growing weaker and weaker with every passing minute. The battle that had broken out during the meeting had completely exhausted her. This wasn't the first time something of this nature had occurred. Brady and Niko we're always going at it with each other, and Brady had never had a liking towards Lux. Brady never really had a liking towards anybody except for Bray.

How could Amara possibly maintain peace to so many different personalities? A sense of hopelessness swept over her, and she could feel her heart pounding in her chest. She sat down on the bed, her breathing becoming labored. Thoughts, the kind that filled her dreams every night since the Elders died kept echoing, each question taking the voice of an old fallen member of the tribe:

_What if there's an invasion?_

_What if the entire tribe is murdered?_

_What if they starve?_

_What if one of them betrays you?_

_What if the Bulldogs destroy them?_

_What if they're captured?_

_What if you fail?_

_Whatifwhatifwhatifwhatif-_

Tears began to fall from her eyes and form little wet puddles on her night gown. She tried as hard as she could to stifle the sobs. It felt as though her lungs would give out. More than anything, she wanted her mother there to touch her face and promise her that it was going to be okay.

"Why are you crying?" A voice asked her, disrupting her thoughts.

She looked up from her palms and saw Falcon standing in the doorway. His shirt was missing, revealing a white bandage wrapped around his abdomen. His dark brown hair was ruffled, probably from being asleep all day. Amara cleared the tears from her face and put on the mask that she so often wore when someone caught her at her weakest. "N-no, I was just deep in thought."

Falcon walked closer to her. "I was trying to find you to tell you how thankful I am that you and your tribe saved me. I figured you were asleep, but I thought I'd just check. I guess I was wrong." His eyes looked into hers, bearing into her soul.

Amara sniffled. She drew her eyes away from his. "It was no problem. We're not the kind of people to leave someone high and dry. You needed help, we helped." The voices began to come back in her head, asking her those questions that she didn't know the answer to. She turned away from him for a moment, rubbing her eyes. "W-why were you even around where we found you? Don't you know Bulldog territory when you're in it?" She turned back to face him. He could see right through her mask, and that scared her to death.

"I'm not from around here. The Eco's are way out in the woods, far away from these so called 'Bulldogs'. We used to be very big, but since the Elders died, there are only just a few of us… one of them being my sister." Falcon walked over to Amara's bed. He sat down, patting the seat next to him. "Sit. You don't look comfortable."

Amara instantly sat down, feeling light headed. "Before you blacked out, you said something about a locket?"

"Yeah…" Falcon's voice sounded a little less cheerful than before. "I wish I had it. It was a friend of hers, an Elder from this tribe. I wish I could see the face, I'd be able to point her out…"

"I'm sorry." Amara said.

"It's fine." Falcon told her, slightly smiling. "I came out here because I thought your tribe would know of the virus. Is it able to spread to us, the second generation?"

"We don't know. As fast as we found out about it, our parents began to die. They had found the cure in an abandoned government building and gave it to the entire city. It had never been written down, only memorized by a few of the members. Now that their dead, it's completely impossible to find and remake it. Anyway, I think we're safe for now…" She felt a little depressed… Safe for now- until it came back to take their lives as well..

Falcon placed his hand on hers. "Something _is_ wrong. I can sense it."

"Wrong? What do you mean?" Amara stood up and turned her back to him. "I'm fine… just tired from the meeting."

He stood along with her, his body pressed close to her back. He placed his face right by her ear, brushing some of her brown hair away from it. "You don't fool me, Miss Amara. Those tears were tears of anxiety and fear." Falcon whispered. "You're scared you're going to fail."

Amara turned on her heel to look him in the eye. "Then I guess, Mr. Falcon, that you don't know me."

"Stop hiding from me- from everyone. You throw on this tough exterior, but I can see right through you." Falcon held up the back of his hand to brush against her cheek, but Amara quickly grabbed it.

"Somebody has to be tough around here. You weren't around when Brady and Niko got into another fight."

"It doesn't have to be like that, though-"

A crash from downstairs startled them both. A loud bell rang throughout the mall, causing Amara and Falcon to simultaneously cover their ears. "What the hell is that noise?" Falcon shouted over the loud wailing.

"It's the alarm… someone's broken in!" Amara slipped her feet into her boots and ran down the steps, Falcon behind her.

All of the tribe had woken up and were looking down the balcony at the gate. They all looked frightened. Bray, though groggy and half asleep, had a pistol in his hand. "It can't be Bulldogs. They would have already broken down the barricade. Good thing I sleep with this on my night stand." He kissed the barrel of the gun.

"HELP. PLEASE. FALCON." A voice screamed as five people ran inside.

"River?" Falcon said, in complete shock. He ran down to the bars, seeing his sister and four other Eco's, their clothing tattered and muddy. Each of them bore some kind of wound. He looked back at the rest of the Mallrats who were gawking over the balcony. "What are you waiting for! Open the gate!"

Lux nodded running back toward the cafe.

"Falcon, they attacked us… We barely escaped." The gate began to rise. River ducked underneath, along with the others, to get into the mall faster. She wrapped one arm around her big brother, tears falling down her cheeks. "Everything we've worked for… they burnt it all down. Every last bit of it."

"Who?" Asked Niko. None of the Mallrats moved… they could barely breathe.

"I-I'm not sure." River said to Niko. "They're… they're searching for someone. The name… I wish I could remember the name… my arm…" She held onto it, and Falcon knew she had been shot. "We ran into a hostile tribe as we came to the city…as if we needed anymore trouble."

"Bulldogs…" Tristan whispered.

"Oh, River." Falcon ran his hand through his sister's hair, embracing her. He didn't want to let her go.

"Everyone, escort them to the hospital downstairs. Tristan and I will resecure the mall." Bray said as everyone started helping the four other Eco's to the hospital, Falcon escorted River.

Amara ran up to him and stood alongside of River, helping her out as well. "It hurts so bad, Falcon. Why would anyone want to do this to us?" River moaned. The poor thing was in so much pain.

"Sounds like you ran into Bulldogs." Amara noted as they arrived to the Hospital. "But the burning down part… it seems fishy. You're so far from their territory. Lay on this bed, River." Falcon helped his sister lay down. The only critical injury she had was the gunshot wound to her forearm. There were a few cuts here and there on her face. It seemed she had been the only one to be shot. "Straighten out your arm… good girl." River did as she was told. Amara turned away from them, fumbling around on a table with already sterilized utensils.

"Falcon, I'm scared…"

"It'll hurt, but you have to be brave-"

"No, not this. These people had their faces covered in paint. They truly looked like death if I'd ever seen it… skulls painted there like they were actual bone…"

Amara turned back around with a tool to help extract the bullet, as well as a bandage. "I'm going to pull it out. It's going to hurt, but it needs to come out now. Are you ready?" River nodded, grabbing a hold of Falcon's hand, squeezing it to take her mind off the pain. Amara started to pull out the bullet and could see Rivers eyes filling with tears, her face beat red. Finally, for what felt like an hour to River, Amara pulled it out and put it on the table. She wrapped the girl's arm tightly. "All finished."

"Thank you." River said, the tears in her eyes seemed to just vanish. The girl looked back at the rest of the Mallrats caring for the other Eco's. "You have a tribe full of doctors?" She asked Amara, curiously.

"Everyone knows a little something about first aide. Our Elders taught us because they knew it would be useful." Amara told her. It was true. Lux was creating a make-shift sling for one girl and Brady was wrapping a male's torso. Niko was bandaging a child's forehead after she cleared some blood from her mother's nose.

Tristan and Bray came down the stairs. "Security is tightened. If they were being followed, we're ready." Tristan said, sporting a dagger in one hand and a gun in his holster. "Nobody's breaking in tonight."

Bray walked toward Amara, watching Falcon and his sister talking. "Bulldog attack?"

"They're blood thirsty people, but they would never go out of their way to destroy a tribe. When they reached the city, I think that they ran into a few… the bullet in Falcon's sister's arm is evidence of that. Bulldogs didn't destroy their camp… it sounds like something worse." Amara got the chills. "I don't like the sound of it, Bray."

River cleared her throat, turning to Amara and her half-brother. "They didn't follow us to you…the skeletons. I'm not sure about these Bulldogs." She said in a small voice. "One of the skeletons, I'm assuming that he was their leader… he was wearing this hat. It looked terribly familiar, like I'd seen it in old photographs." River was obviously a bit dazed from the severe pain she'd just endured. "He wasn't like the others in his tribe. He wasn't a skeleton. They were looking for someone. I don't remember the name…" She repeated as her eyes began to shut.

"She's exhausted…Where can they all sleep tonight?" Falcon asked Amara and Bray.

"We have cots. We can set a few up around the mall. And extra blankets and pillows.. we should have enough for everyone." Amara turned to the others who were talking and helping the Eco's. "Set up the cots and blankets, guys?" She asked, and they all nodded, sleepily.

"Thank you.." Falcon said, touching Amara's hand for a second. He then reached for River's hand and helped her up, escorting her with the other Mallrats to arrange the cots.

"He likes you." Bray noted as he watched everyone leave the Hospital. He slowly began cleaning everything up. "I can totally tell."

Amara's face fell into a deep blush. "Yeah, cool." Her heart began to beat faster in her chest. It was making her angry. "That's the least of my problems, Bray. We need to think about our newest threat."

"Let someone into that heart of ice, Freedom Fighter. You need someone to warm you up." Bray smirked.

"Bray, drop it." She snapped, then instantly felt guilty. "Sorry… I'm just not in the best of moods. I have a lot on my mind."

"Well, tomorrow we'll look into this new Tribe. I think you should go to bed, though. I'll do the rest of the cleaning up. You look a mess."

"Thanks, bro." Amara said, sarcastically, as she trudged upstairs.

What bothered Amara so much about Falcon taking interest in her? He could see through her mask- the wall she built after her mother had died. She needed to be a leader, someone who doesn't break easily. And yet she felt completely broken. The fact that Falcon called her out on this caused something in her stomach to tighten. She wanted to admit that she wasn't going to let him in, but she knew eventually he would barge right through her stone walls and fine the real her. _Maybe Bray's right?_ She thought to herself as she lay in bed._ Maybe I just need to let someone in for once?_ A chill went through her spine, causing the hairs on her neck to stand up straight.


	8. Chapter 8

Tristan didn't find the Mall, the Mall found Tristan.

He was what some would call a 'Street Fox'. He had no family, no tribe- it was just him, rummaging for food and finding places to sleep in abandoned warehouses or in large garbage bins. This is how it was for most of Tristan's life until the Elders started dying and chaos began spreading. All in his childhood and most of his teenaged life he had been at peace with the ways of the city, knowing how to scrape by with just street knowledge. As soon as tribes like The Bulldogs began to pop up, with their guns and daggers, things began to get tough for him.

He was stationed in an abandoned warehouse, the same one he had been coming to for a while. He was wrapped in a couple of blankets that he had come by in his travels. He had just finished eating an unmarked can of soup which tasted like a mix between split-pea and clam chowder. Available to him was a small can of gasoline which he kept in his warehouse. With a couple of stray pieces of wood lying around, he created a little fire to warm up his meal and keep himself warm.

Tristan watched the small fire dancing in the man-made fire pit and could feel his eyelids slowly growing heavier and heavier with the passing minute. Curling up in his blankets, he gently let himself sleep. This place which he had taken shelter to over the years was safe- nobody dared to enter it. Every time he came back here to sleep, his slumber was a sound one. Waking up was always a pleasure- but not with the head of a pistol in your mouth.

Bleary eyed, he didn't put a reason behind the metal taste in his mouth until he shut his eyes tightly and reopened them. Standing in front of him were three kids, the middle one holding the gun in his mouth. All three had tattered and dirty clothing, their tribal markings looked like bloody slashes across their faces. "This is what happens when you sleep with your mouth open, stray." The middle one said, causing the other two to cackle like hyenas. "Get up!" He screamed in Tristan's face with a slight lisp. There was a metal stud pierced through his tongue and his septum.

Tristan did as he was told, the gun never leaving the inside of his mouth. His heart was pounding. What was he going to do? They began walking outside. The sunlight stung Tristan's eyes. They pushed him over; the gun leaving his mouth now was aimed toward him. "Last requests, rat?"

"I-It doesn't have to be like this…" Tristan started to shake a bit. "Can't we just-" In an instant, three gun shots went off. All three of the men fell to the ground. Tristan stood up, checking himself for any bullet wounds. He then turned on his heels and gazed at his savior.

A beautiful female, blond, with pale skin and a piercing gaze was holding a shiny 9mm in her hand. She was wearing a breast plate over her chest. A smile appeared on her face. "What? Never seen a lady with a gun before?"

Tristan forgot that he had been staring at her. He turned slightly, looking from the dead kids back to her again. "J ust a little… shocked, is all…"

She walked closer to him, looking him over. "You look fine… what we're you doing out here without protection? I'm surprised you haven't been killed in your sleep! This tribe, The Bulldogs, they are blood thirsty. I've heard stories where they've murdered for no reason. Little babies, even."

"This is my warehouse. Nobody has bothered me in years."

"You don't have a tribe?"

"My mother died when I was really young, and I've been a Street Fox ever since. I made my way around just fine without a tribe." He said, almost proudly. "I'm Tristan, by the way." He held out his hand for her.

"Niko." She said, taking it and giving it a shake. She placed her gun between a cord would around her thigh and her skin. Tristan watched her, in awe. She was too beautiful for words and she had a spirit about her which he found breathtaking.

They both stared at each other, awkwardly, for a while. He was watching the way the wind played with her blond hair, and she was watching how fascinated he was with her. What broke the silence were gunshots from around the corner. "The Bulldogs are going to realize that some of their men are missing." She noted, grabbing his hand. "Come with me, I can take you to a safe place."

From that day on, Tristan lived with the Mallrats. At first they fought about it, especially Brady, but after Amara laid down the law, they accepted him as one of them. Brady had thrown a fit and locked herself in her room for a couple of days straight.

When she grabbed his hand in that moment, she had it locked around his heart. He never knew he could feel a feeling like this, being completely head over heels with such a beautiful woman. During his days at the mall, their relationship grew. They?d wake up before sunrise and make their way up to the roof of the mall. With their legs dangling off the catwalk, they watched the sunrise in the morning- sometimes blood red and specks of purple clouds floating by, sometimes pastel pink and blue. The silence which fell over the city was the most peaceful thing he had ever experience. No gun shots, no painful cries or screaming. They could actually hear birds chirping from the woods around the city.

* * *  
The afternoon after the Eco's had come to the Mall, Tristan was busy walking the streets to see if he could hear rumors from the other tribes about this new threat that was upon them. So far, there was nothing to be said. Even when he asked, people still didn't know what he was talking about. Usually this kind of news travels fast… Tristan's mind felt slightly at ease. Maybe these people wouldn't travel as far as their city. The Eco tribe was so far out in the wilderness.

As he walked down through the sewers to make sure everything was alright, he heard a noise from around the bend. With the flashlight in his hand, he shined some light over in the direction of the noise. "Who's there?" He called, slowing touching his gun with his free hand. The noise he heard almost sounded like a retching. "Hello?"

He turned the bend and saw Niko, bent on her knees, crying. The makeup on her face was smeared and she looked white as a ghost. "Tristan? I-"

Tristan took his hand off the gun and knelt down beside her. "Babe, what's the matter?"

"I didn't want to tell you… I didn't want to tell anyone. They will be so mad at me. They'll all think that I'm the one who's been stealing the food, but I swear it wasn't me…"

He wrapped his arms around her, making her rest her head against his chest. "Nobody will think anything… if you've got some kind of eating disorder, we can get through it together-"

"No, Tristan… I'm pregnant." Niko whispered, as she started to cry even harder.

"Why are you crying? This is great!" Tristan couldn't help but smile. He'd never consider being a father until that very moment. He never knew his father; he'd left his mother before he was even born. While in the city, he had watched Elders with their children, teaching them the ways of the city.

"I can't raise a child in this city…" Niko pulled herself from his embrace. "Food rations are low as it is, and I'd have to eat for two from now on. I know that little cow Brady will cry about adding another member into this tribe. It isn't safe here to raise a defenseless little child."

Tristan dried a couple of Niko's tears. "Don't you worry about a thing. I'll collect more food for you and the baby. I'll protect you both." He placed his hand on her stomach, which was slightly bloated. "Nikolett… We're going to be parents."

Niko couldn't help but smile a bit, this time her tears of sadness and worry turning to tears of hope and joy. "I'm gonna be a mom." She repeated over and over as Tristan held her close, rocking her back and forth.


	9. Chapter 9

Brady sat at a table in the cafe, silently drinking a cup green tea. After the startle from last night and a crazy dream she had had, it was the only thing that could calm her down. But... maybe it wasn't a dream? She felt like this so called dream could have easily been a reality- a memory from when she was a little girl. When Brady was old enough to understand, Trudy told her about her childhood. Her father was awful leader of an old tribe called the Locusts. Everyone called him Zoot, though Trudy always referred to him as Martin. After he passed, a group of people called the Chosen had developed a sick fascination with him... idolizing him like a religious God of some sort. They'd brainwashed Brady's mother into thinking that she was the 'Supreme Mother' and Brady herself as the 'Divine Child'.

"I let a couple of terrible things happen to you... I was so stupid back then..." A couple of tears began to spill down Trudy's cheek. "I was so far into things that when they'd tried to take you away from me, I realized how wrong this was. You've been in a lot of messes at such a young age... I'm sorry."

"Oh, Mum..." Brady said, wrapping her arms around Trudy. She hugged her, smiling a little bit at the corners of her mouth. "It's alright." Many a night, Trudy would weep on Brady's shoulder over past situations that were coming back to haunt her. By the end of Trudy's life, she was very much so a mess. It was Brady that was taking care of her most of the time. They'd been so close… after she died, she rarely went outside to see sunlight. She couldn't bear to be happy again.

The memory that stuck in her brain the most was seeing the face of the man Trudy had called 'The Guardian', just looking at her... staring. He had a cracked smile... the smile of a madman. From where Brady was laying, he just watched her, his eyes wide... and that smile...

Brady received a shiver up her spine as she heard foot steps coming from the stairs behind her. She looked over and saw Falcon's sister, River, barefoot and clad in a little woven night dress. The girl sat down across from Brady and smiled slightly her way. "Hi."

"Hey." Brady responded, taking another sip of her tea.

"I... I just wanted to thank you for helping out last night." River told her, avoiding Brady's eyes. River thought her terribly intimidating.

"It wasn't just me." Brady remarked, putting the cup onto the table. "The rest of the tribe helped out too."

"I know..." River trailed off for a moment, looking curiously around the cafe. "This place is huge... How long have you lived here?"

"All my life. Once, when I was young, we packed all of our belongings and had to leave on a boat for almost over two years. We came back again, thankfully. Things got better after that."

"What do you mean?" River asked, her attention now focused on Brady.

"Well, back then, the Techno's had ruled. Every time a tribe that tried to take over the city left, another would come right out of the blue to keep us on our toes. When we came back after two years, there were no more takeovers... so said my mother. Now, it's a little different..."

"My mother lived in this mall once. That's why I made Falcon come here in the first place. I thought you guys, of all people, would have had an antidote to the virus. I thought if it was something just affecting our tribe, the Mallrats would know what to do."

Brady raised an eyebrow. "Your mother?"

"Yeah... Her tribe name was Eclipse. Something happened in her past... she was forced to leave the city. Eventually she stumbled into the Eco camp and our people took her in. She didn't really speak of old times, though."

"Oh." Brady got back to her tea. She took another deep gulp, finding the situation quite awkward. She never really liked engaging conversation with people she didn't know. She wished the girl would just go on about her business instead of making small talk… "I'm sorry for your loss."

"Yeah, same." River replied. They both stopped talking for a moment, diverting their eyes from each others. River squirmed a bit in her seat, folding and unfolding her legs. She seemed antsy to Brady... like there was a question behind her lips. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"What's your name?"

"Brady." Again, she picked up the tea to take a sip. This was all getting entirely too awkward for Brady to stand. "Look, I better get going… I have things to attend to-"

"Goodness, that name sounds familiar…" River murmured to herself, trying to figure out where she had heard that name from. Her eyes then widened as she stumbled upon whom's lips uttered that name; their harsh, gnarled words screaming, asking them if they'd seen her. When they'd said no, the skeleton's burnt down their homes and killed one of their friends. "Y-your name is Brady."

Brady's brows knit in confusion. "Yeah..."

"You're in danger." River said, the tone of her voice hushed. Her wide eyes glanced around the cafe, hoping nobody would walk in during their conversation. "I was so frightened… I couldn't understand them… but thinking back I know what they were saying. It's as clear as a bell."

"What is it?" Brady asked, just wishing the girl would get on with what she had to say. "What kind of danger?"

"Those men, the ones who raided our camp, they'd been whispering a name... your name. I didn't exactly understand what they were saying at first... I was just trying to gather up my people. They burnt down the entire village, saying we knew where you were..."

Brady's heart started beating hard in her chest. "You're crazy... absolutely bonkers." She wouldn't believe a damn word this girl was saying. Obviously this was a trick...

"No, you have to believe me. They were looking for you, the men with the skeleton faces."

Brady stood up, knocking her chair backwards. She'd had nightmares about things like this happening- her past and her father coming back to haunt her. There were nights where she'd wake up, drenched in a cold sweat. The only thing she could do on nights like that was try to slow down her heart from jumping out her chest. Who was this girl to tell her such lies and play on her fears? "Get out."

"Brady-"

"GET. OUT."

"What's going on out here?" Amara and Bray walked up the stairs, having just been counting their rations in the basement. "Brady?" Bray asked, walking over to his cousin. He'd seen her in panic mode before, but nothing like this. She had deep depressions in her forehead, her eyes looking as though they were going to pop out of her head. Her face was beat red- almost purple. He placed his hand on her shoulder. "Calm down, what's the matter-"

"Don't touch me… none of you." Brady pushed Bray out of her way. "She's crazy. Nobody's looking for me." Brady stomped off and after a few moments slammed the door of her bedroom behind her.

Her body instantly collapsed, legs curled up against her chest as she rocked herself back and forth. Images began to flash forward; images that she had tried to erase from her memory. Things that happened in her very early childhood traumatized her, causing dreams which ended in feeling as though she were going to die before dawn. The man who was supposed to be her father… Zoot, staring down at her with his deadly eyes. The Guardian's wicked smile. Things that she shouldn't remember were all coming back to her, full throttle.

A knock at the door distracted her for the moment. "Brady, it's me... Bray."

"Go away. Just leave me alone." Brady screamed, almost at the top of her lungs. Tears were a relief to her hot cheeks. Noises, voices, loud cries and chanting... filling the air.

"But I'd like to help you."

"Just stop it, okay?" At this reply, Brady could hear Bray's footsteps walking away from the door. "Why won't these voices stop?" She covered her ears, crying, wishing that her mother was there to hold her.


	10. Chapter 10

"She won't open the door." Bray told Amara after he'd given up getting Brady out of her room. He sat down at a table across from where River was still sitting, staring down at the table below her elbows.

"It's my entire fault." River snapped out of her trance, looking over at Bray. "I told her about the skeleton men... At first I didn't realize it was her they were speaking of, I couldn't recall the name. But once she told me, I remembered again."

"Hold on." Amara walked over to where Bray was standing, right in Rivers line of sight. "You're telling me that the people who raided the Eco camp were looking for my cousin?"

"I guess. They were saying her name over and over, asking each of us if we knew her."

"What's going on?" Falcon walked up the stairs of the mall, having heard the commotion from his room below in the military shop. At the sound of his voice, River stood up and ran to him, hugging his middle. "Hey, hey, hey... What's going on?"

Bray was angry. He could feel his fists tightening in anger. Earlier this morning, himself and his sister had asked the Eco's which were in the hospital below everything they had heard and seen- Amara had even wrote it down to keep it documented. The way it sounded, this was just a rogue tribe of arsonists. But knowing what they knew now... things were suddenly different.

"I just didn't know... I didn't think it was her!" River was near tears. Falcon had never seen his sister so upset before in his life.

"Go downstairs with the others. They probably need you." He told her. She nodded up at him and made her way down the steps. He turned to Amara and Bray, his arms crossed around his chest. "Now, care to explain to me what's going on?"

"Your sister was talking to my cousin... apparently the skeleton crazies have something other than arson on their mind." Bray told him, running a hand through his hair.

"They were asking the lot of them if they knew Brady."

"So? Brady might be a common name..."

In unison, Bray and Amara gave Falcon a skeptical look.

"Sorry..."

"I was worried about this. It's happened before with our Elders. You see, Brady's father was my crazy uncle. A tribe called The Chosen, who basically worshiped the man named Zoot, decided to take over the Mall and try to take Brady captive. We fought back, full force. We haven't heard word from them for years... not since my mother was a girl." Bray had only heard stories of The Chosen. Brady had lived it.

"You don't think it's another group like The Chosen?" Amara asked, a sudden flutter in her chest making it a bit hard for her to breathe.

"Who knows...? Hopefully they didn't follow the Eco's to us…"

They all hushed their voices when Lux walked into the kitchen. She grabbed a glass from a cabinet and poured some bottled water into it. Feeling all of their gazes on her back, she turned to look at them. "What's all this? If I didn't know any better, I'd say you guys are talking about me."

"No, it's… complicated." Amara replied, cupping her chin in the palm of her hand.

"A new threat to us, unfortunately." Bray added. "A tribe of crazies, looking for..." He paused for a moment. "Brady." He had so much on his mind right now; he could tell his half sister did too.

Lux remembered all of what the Eco's told her the night before- about the skull-faced men. She felt bad that they had trashed their camp, but she was happy that they'd begun hunting. When Bray said they'd been looking for Brady, she stopped. Maybe this wasn't the right sort of skull-faced men? She'd told them to hunt and destroy the Bulldogs. That was the incentive for Zoot's goggles. Why were they looking for Brady? "Oh." Was all she could manage to say. Her face was emotionless, but her mind could not stop racing.

"Do you think you could draw up plans for an alarm system? I know Jack has one throughout the sewers, but it needs major improvements. We need traps, too. I want this mall to be as safe as possible, understand me?" Amara asked. She knew she could trust the girl. Lux had the knowledge of Jack and the beauty of her mother, Ellie.

"Yeah, sure. I'll get on it right away." Lux turned away from them, the glass of water still clutched in her hand. She walked to her room, her brain working on overtime.

"Ahhhh! Stop it!"

Amara, Bray and Falcon all turned toward the entrance of the mall, watching Niko run inside. She was laughing, not crying as the three of them thought she had been. Tristan was running after her, finally grabbing her around the middle and picking her up. "I got you." He said, kissing her on the cheek. The two of them shared a passionate kiss, then turned to the audience watching them. The trio looked away, pretending they hadn't watched this intimate moment between the two of them.

"What's going on, guys?" Niko asked, walking up the steps. She took off her metal breast plate and ankle guards, and then proceeded to place a woven satchel on the table in front of them. "Tristan and I were out in the woods, gathering some things. Can you believe we found an apple tree? Like, what are the odds?" She pulled out an apple from the many they had gathered.

"We also got some berries and roots." Tristan took a chair from a vacant table.

"Great..." Bray mumbled. He was in no mood to celebrate the fruits of the earth right now. The city had been a war zone since the Elders died, but somehow the Mallrats had always been at peace- with each other and most of the other tribes. The Bulldogs never bothered them personally. True, they shot at everything that had two or four legs, but it was never like them to have a personal vendetta against any one tribe. The only time where that was the case was before he was born.

"Well, don't be enthusiastic about that, then. But Tristan and I have some news." Niko was grinning from ear to ear, a complete contrast of what Bray, Amara and Falcon were feeling. Niko quickly scurried over to where Tristan was seated, wrapping her arms around his neck lovingly. "We're going to have a baby!"

In Niko's mind, the entire room would fill with clapping. They would all have huge smiles on their faces. Amara would hug Niko and tell her how lucky she was. Falcon and Bray would pat Tristan on the back. Everything would be perfect. Instead, on each of their faces was a growing look of panic. "Um, guys... you know, it's supposed to be a HAPPY thing, having a baby..." Niko unwrapped her arms from Tristan, placing them on her slender hips.

"Uh, it's great." Amara murmured. Bringing a baby into the world now? What were they thinking! Then again, they didn't know all of the potential danger that everyone was in. She wasn't sure if she should tell them or not, though it was too late. In all her anger, Niko stood Tristan up and stomped off into her room. Amara's posture relaxed a bit.

"Don't worry now." Falcon piped in. "Seriously... if you all start panicking now, your heads will fog. We don't know where this tribe is, and we don't even know if they know where we are. The Mallrats aren't as well known as they used to be... they could be completely lost as to where your whereabouts are."

"You're right." Amara said. "All we can do is hope that Lux can improve the alarm system... I think I'll be able to sleep sounder at night."

* * *

"What's their problem?" Niko asked Tristan as she sat in their bed, Indian-style. "They can't just be happy for me, FOR ONCE?"

"If it were any other day, I'm sure they would be." Tristan replied, grabbing a book off of his night stand. It was a book from what seemed like another life to him- 'Wuthering Heights' by Emily Bronte. Books were rare to come by lately. When they had computers back, once upon a time, most of the literature was typed and stored there. There was never really a need for books. When Niko took him to the mall that was when he finally started to read again, because they had book shelves among bookshelves in the Book Store. "Obviously something is on their minds. I think it has to do with those Eco's that have taken shelter in our basement."

Niko grabbed the feather pillow from behind her and placed it between her legs, wrapping her arms around it. Her eyes followed Tristan as he made his way to his hammock which was conveniently placed by a bookshelf. "I guess you're right... You know, everyone's been acting so weird. It just gives me a really bad feeling."

"Don't think about it... you're carrying a little one now, so any anxiety you feel goes right down to him or her."

To this, Niko couldn't help but smile. All of her bad feelings quickly melted away as she thought of the life growing inside her. "What shall we name it when it comes out? I do hope it's a girl... I've always wanted a little girl to dress up."

"Are you saying you will love it less if it's a male?" Tristan asked, peeking from over the book he was reading.

"No! Of course not." Niko wrinkled her nose at him. "I'm just saying... it's every woman's dream to have a little girl they can coddle and dote upon... and dress up." She was too busy in her own little world to see Tristan shaking his head, a huge grin on his face. "I was thinking of maybe naming her Regina... or Gayle?"

"Gayle sounds like an old woman." Tristan remarked from behind his book.

"Fine, not Gayle. How about Fiona? And for a boy... we could name him Gideon or Skye. Or how about-"

As Niko went on, Tristan tried to tune her out a bit with his reading. He loved her dearly, but the girl knew how to run her mouth sometimes. _"If all else perished, and he remained, I should still continue to be; and if all else remained, and he were annihilated, the universe would turn to a mighty stranger: I should not seem a part of it."_ He read, in awe that someone could write something so beautiful and yet so depressing all at once.


	11. Chapter 11

"Gosh, Gavyn! Just gimme a break already!" Payton yelled from a couple of paces behind her brother. She had a small, towheaded boy around the age of three on her hip, who was silently humming to himself. The last adult had died, and as fast as things were good, they'd grown for the worst. The panic of another apocalypse had caused their entire tribe to go crazy. Payton had never before seen such acts of violence. There was constant fighting over who would be the leader, who would make rules and how to punish violators. It was no place to have a child raised- especially one she had grown so fond of. Little Teige was the son of Cloe and Ved, friends of Danni, their mother. Before Payton and Gavyn were born, Danni had met up with Cloe and Ved when they'd escaped the city- the very city that they were passing through. She'd already established a tribe in the town and welcomed the both of them with open arms.

But now they were gone… Teige was joint authority of Gavyn and Payton. Payton had never dreamed of being a mother before, and suddenly she was thrust with this responsibility.

"We need to go, Payton. It's almost night, and Teige needs to eat soon." At the sound of his name, Teige clapped his hands. Despite the pain in his legs from so much walking, Gavyn couldn't help but crack a small smile. Sure, the kid could be a pain in the ass, but he was quite cute. They'd been on the road for a week now, staying in different abandoned buildings that came their way. The first day of walking was brutal- they'd managed to walk from their town to this new city. Things were different here. For one, the surprise rounds of gun fire woke Teige in the night. Gavyn had gotten into a tiff with a kid who claimed to be a Bulldog and had been almost shot, point blank, in the head. He and Payton learned to equip himself with a pistol at all times.

"Where would you like us to go? We should just leave this city all together. It's even worst then where we were before!" Payton stopped walking. They'd been traveling the back alleys of the city, knowing there would be less of a chance of being spotted. From pieces of car parts and run down appliances, they'd made armor for themselves and the little one.

"To move on, we must cut through it." Gavyn told her while he scoped the buildings around them. There was a small abandoned restaurant at the other side of the road- or what looked to be a restaurant at one time. The building was rusty and the windows had long since been broken. From where he stood, Gavyn could tell that most of the tables and chairs had been destroyed. He could spot an upstairs, which probably served as storage at one time. They'd be safe there for a couple of days… "C'mon, there's where we'll stay." He looked back at his sister, pointing to the building he was speaking of. Teige made bubbling noises in response.

Payton sighed dramatically. The bag on her back weighed about 300 pounds to her, and Teige added about 30 pounds in her arms. The whole trip she'd been bitter about her brother only carrying a knapsack of tinned food and fresh veggies. He had been making excuses as to why he couldn't hold the kid. She switched the hip Teige was on, and then began walking with Gavyn behind her, gritting her teeth with each step she took.

When they'd stepped inside, they already knew that they couldn't take shelter in the downstairs section. There were rats gorging on what food was left over from the last tenants, as well as the giant broken window which would give them away easily. Carefully, they walked up the creaky steps to check out the upstairs. Everything was cleared away, except for a few boxes and some left over rags. They both assumed that this was a usual pass-through for some strays.

As soon as Payton put Teige down, be started to cry. Having being held all day, he enjoyed having arms wrapped around him. "Shut him up!" Gavyn yelled in Payton's direction. Noise travels fast in a city this quiet, and Gavyn knew that if the kid kept crying, someone would find them. They'd already been put into tight situations because of him.

Payton knelt down beside her bag and began trying to find a few of his toys. She reached past his nappies and a can of crushed carrot baby food to a couple of wooden ABC blocks. She walked over to the child and put them down in front of him. Instantly, the boy stopped crying, completely fascinated with his new toys. Payton took a deep breath and stood up. She couldn't help but glare at her brother. "You have to be a little bit more compassionate, brother. The kid lost his mum a few weeks ago."

"Haven't we all?" Gavyn spat, angrily. He saw the corners of his sister's mouth twitch, which made him realize he'd gone a bit too far. "Sorry, I'm just stressed. The closest way to where we want to go is through this city, and so far it seems like the longest journey of my life. This city is a warzone… Mom told us it was pretty good at one time… her old tribe lives here."

"A lot has happened since Mom's been here." Payton crossed her arms over her chest and watched Tiege play with his blocks. He'd put one on top of the other, and then knock them down with a swat of his hand. Apparently this was the funniest thing in the entire world, because he'd erupt with his tiny, hiccupping giggles. Innocence. Payton couldn't remember the last time she'd been a child. This whole experience has made her grow up so fast. She turned back to her brother, who was rummaging in his own knapsack. "What are you doing?"

"I'm hungry." When he stood back up, in one hand was a tin of beans and the other was a can opener. "Want some?" He began to open the can.

Payton shook her head. "Ew, no." She hated tinned food, but she knew that it was the only way they could survive in this city. Where she was from, they'd had their own grown fruits and vegetables. They made their own pasta and bread- completely fresh. Everything about their old home was fresh and new… this city was stale and smelly. The smell of newly fired guns tainted everything.

"Suit yourself." Gavyn took a plastic fork from his back pocket and began to eat from the can. Cold beans. He didn't mind it, especially since he had been hungry for a whole hour before they'd arrived. In his mind, they'd travel on foot for at least a day, and then they'd find shelter for three days, repeating this pattern for as long as possible. It got a bit difficult with the kid always crying for something or wanting a nap.

While Gavyn and Payton were talking, Teige got bored of the blocks. He was about to start crying when he felt something in the pocket of his little trousers. When he pulled it out, he had remembered that while they were walking through a part of the forest, he'd picked up a pretty on the way. Though not sure of what it was, he recognized the face in it. "Mommy." He said as he opened it. "Mommy! Mommy!"

Gavyn and Payton both turned to watch Teige. "What have you got there?" Payton asked him, walking toward the little boy on the ground. She picked up what was in his hand and gasped. "Woah… Gavyn look!" She turned and showed him what Teige had gotten his small fingers on. "It's a locket… with Cloe's face on it! My god, she looks young!"

"Young? She never looked old." Gavyn told his sister while swallowing a forkful of beans. He put the plastic fork in the can and snatched the necklace out of Paytons hands. It was gold, and rather heavy. The locket itself was shaped in an oval, and on one side of the locket was Teige's mother, while the other was another girl. "Strange. I wonder where he picked it up at."

As Payton was about to open her mouth to respond, Teige began to cry. "Mine! Mine! I want Mommy!" He screamed, slamming his little fists into the floorboards of the room. Tears built up in his eyes and ran down his cheeks and onto his shirt; his face was beat red. Payton quickly grabbed the necklace from Gavyn and handed it back to Tiege. The baby instantly ceased it's crying and opened the locket once more to gaze at his mother's photograph. "Mommy..."

Payton couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness for the kid. At least she and her brother were fully aware that their mother was dying… poor Tiege still didn't get it. She knew that she could never take care of him as well as Cloe could… she was such a fantastic mother. So was Danni. "Maybe I'll take you up on that offer on the beans." Payton told him, her mind in a daze. She wondered how exactly Teige got a hold of the necklace… she hardly believed in fate, but for some reason she felt as though Cloe were smiling down on them from wherever she was right now. She wanted to keep her memory in her child's heart.

Gavyn nodded, taking another plastic fork from his pocket and giving it to his sister. They both sat down on one of the empty boxes and began to eat silently, listening to Teige babble on about his Mommy.

That evening, the only one who managed to fall asleep easily was Teige, his small arms wrapped around the locket as if it was actually his mother and not just cheap jewelry. Gavyn had a hard time getting comfortable on the floor, but eventually after an hour or so of tossing and turning, he began his usual light snoring. Payton stayed up for a while, just gazing out the window. She was transfixed at how quiet the streets were at night. It seemed as though a lot of the strays felt this too, because she'd watch a few of them walking with their knapsacks, looting for any tins they'd find.

She couldn't wait until they were out of here. It would be safer for everybody if they were finally through… especially for the little one. Once they hit the mountains, they could start their own life. Payton knew a lot about crops, and Gavyn knew his share of livestock. Together, they could successfully live in peace with the land. Teige's life would be better that way- completely away from a terrible place such as this. She glanced at the sleeping child, imagining what would happen if they'd settled here. He'd grow into one of those Bulldog fellows, with buzzed hair, missing teeth and a face that looked drained of any life. It made her shiver as her eyes began to slowly shut.

While the both of them were asleep, Teige's small eyelids suddenly popped open. He sat up from his makeshift bed and turned to find the two who were looking after him to be completely out cold. Payton usually had a tight hold on where he was to go, and now freedom was beckoning him. He stood up, the necklace in his small chubby hand, and began to silently walk down the steps of the storage room.

Never before did Teige have such a immunity. He was a little uneasy on his feet, but it didn't matter. To not be on Payton's hip or holding her hand felt like the best feeling in the world. When he stepped outside, he was off down the street.


End file.
